TURIN – Ferrari’s new CEO will be Louis Carey Camilleri, a former chairman of tobacco company Philip Morris International, the automaker said on Saturday.
He succeeds Sergio Marchionne, who is unable to return to work, Ferrari said in a statement.
John Elkann, the controlling shareholder of Ferrari, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and construction equipment maker CNH Industrial, will succeed Marchionne as Ferrari chairman.
Marchionne, 66, had planned to stay on as chairman and CEO at Ferrari until 2021. He underwent surgery in late June and has since suffered serious complications, according to Reuters.
Marchionne replaced Ferrari's long-serving chairman Luca Cordero di Montezemolo in 2014 after escalating clashes between the two executives over strategy and the role of Ferrari within the Fiat Chrysler group.
Montezemolo wanted to maintain Ferrari’s autonomous status and limit annual sales to about 7,000 cars a year to preserve the brand’s exclusive allure. That clashed with Marchionne’s goal of having Ferrari expand volume to 10,000 to cater for rising demand.
Marchionne spun off Ferrari into a separate trading company, a move that built enormous value for the Agnelli family and other shareholders.
Camilleri, 63, has been a Ferrari board member since 2015. He was born in Egypt into a family from Malta. He joined Philip Morris in Switzerland in 1978. From 2008 to 2013, he served as Philip Morris chairman and CEO. From 2001 to 2007, he was a director of Kraft Foods and Kraft’s chairman from 2002 to 2007.
Reuters contributed to this report
